Wild About Portsmouth grant secured

Portsmouth City Council has been awarded a £79,700 Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) grant for a two year natural history project called: 'Wild about Portsmouth', which will share and raise the profile of the city's natural history collection.

The project will develop a group of 'Wild about Portsmouth' natural history advocates who'll champion the city's collection. They'll work alongside museum staff and volunteers to develop and promote our natural history museum.

The funding will also enable us to appoint a curator of natural history and an assistant who'll deliver activities at Cumberland House as well as working on the collection in store.

Cllr Linda Symes, Cabinet Member for Culture Leisure and Sport said: "The city has a fabulous natural history collection and this funding will make it more accessible to everyone: "The specialist staff will also help communities, residents and visitors get more hands on with our collection with natural history activities from bug hunts to identification masterclasses for budding botanists!"

Michelle Roffe, Head of HLF South East said: “We are delighted to support this project, which, thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, will mean that more people will be able to get involved with, protect, and learn about the exciting heritage right on their doorstep.”